A conjunction is two or more planets together in a chart. The classical verse counts them together when they are in the same sign. It gives no limit in degrees. B. V. Raman, a twentieth-century writer, says two planets form a strong yoga only within 12° of each other. Nava uses the sign.
☕ Same room, or same chair?
Think of each sign as a room. Two planets in the same room are together, even if they sit at opposite walls. That is the sign rule.
Jataka Parijata (tr. Subramanya Sastri), ch. VIII, v. 15, p. 508 describes planets joined in one sign. Its verses use a word that means “in one sign”. The chapter gives no orb, and it counts only the seven planets, not Rahu and Ketu.
B. V. Raman, How to Judge a Horoscope, vol. 1, p. 11 adds a nearness test. He says a yoga formed by two planets works fully only when they are within 12° of each other. That is like asking whether they sit side by side, not just in the same room.
The two rules agree most of the time. They part at a sign's edge, and when two planets sit far apart inside one sign.
At a glance
- Sign rule (Jataka Parijata (tr. Subramanya Sastri), ch. VIII, v. 15, p. 508): together when in the same sign; no orb.
- 12° rule (B. V. Raman, How to Judge a Horoscope, vol. 1, p. 11): together, for a two-planet yoga, when within 12°.
- What Nava follows: the sign rule. Two planets in one sign are joined, whatever the degrees, and no orb is applied.
- Calling two planets in one sign a planetary war. A war needs 1°, and only five planets take part.
- Calling a planet near the Sun conjunct only. Within its orb it is also combust.
- Treating the 12° rule as the classical one. The verse says one sign; the 12° test is a later writer's.
Frequently asked questions
Are two planets in the same sign always conjunct?
By the classical verse, yes. Nava follows that. By Raman's test, only if they are also within 12° of each other.
Can planets in two different signs be conjunct?
Not by the sign rule. Two planets 2° apart across a sign's edge are in different signs, so they are not joined. Raman's test would count them close.
Why does Nava not use the 12° rule?
The verse says one sign and gives no orb. The 12° test comes from one modern writer. The classical verse sets no such limit. What Nava follows: the sign, for every conjunction in its readings.
Deep dive: where the two rules part
Three pairs, checked both ways.
🪐 Three pairs
- Sun at 29° of Mesha (Aries), Mercury at 1° of Vrishabha (Taurus). 2° apart, but in two signs. Sign rule: not joined. 12° rule: close.
- Moon at 1° of Kataka (Cancer), Jupiter at 29° of Kataka (Cancer). 28° apart, in one sign. Sign rule: joined. 12° rule: too far.
- Venus at 10° of Tula (Libra), Saturn at 18° of Tula (Libra). 8° apart, in one sign. Both rules: joined.
🔗 Related pages
The sign rule rests on the twelve rashis. For planets that are nearer still, read planetary war and combustion.